The Battle of Britain Memorial - Embankment London
Posted by: Norfolk12
N 51° 30.216 W 000° 07.386
30U E 699658 N 5709754
The memorial was unveiled by H.R.H Prince Charles in September 2005, it is Dedicated to the 2,936 Airmen who fought the Battle of Britain in 1940. This is on the Victoria Embankment in London.
Waymark Code: WM7KJH
Location: United Kingdom
Date Posted: 11/05/2009
Views: 25
The Memorial is on part of a Very large sidewalk alongside the
River Thames, overlooked by ancient London landmarks....& the new London Eye.....crowded with tourists & commuters...& pigeons.....!!
details from Wikipedia :
"Battle of Britain Monument in London is a sculpture on the Victoria Embankment overlooking the River Thames in central London, England which pays tribute to those who took part in the Battle of Britain during World War II.
It was unveiled on 18 September 2005, the 65th anniversary of the Battle, by His Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall in the presence of many of the surviving airmen known collectively as "The Few", following the Royal Air Force Service of Thanksgiving and Rededication on Battle of Britain Sunday.
This service is an annual event, taking place annually since 1943; the first service took place in St Paul's Cathedral and since has taken place in Westminster Abbey.
The monument was conceived by Bill Bond, founder of the Battle of Britain Historical Society, who was later awarded the MBE for his services to heritage. He was solely responsible for negotiating with the City of Westminster to secure the site of the monument, as well as appointing Donald Insall Associates as architects of the project. He also formed the fund-raising committee after raising over £250,000 through an appeal via the Daily Mail.
The budget was £1.74 million which was funded in the main by private donations. Bill Bond appointed Lord Tebbit as chairman of the fundraising committee.
The monument utilises a panelled granite structure 25 metres long which was originally designed as a smoke outlet for underground trains when they were powered by steam engines. A walkway was cut obliquely through the middle of the structure, and is lined with panels of high relief sculpture in bronze depicting scenes from the Battle of Britain.
The centrepiece is an approximately life sized sculpture of airmen scrambling for their aircraft during the battle. The outside of the monument is lined with bronze plaques listing all the airmen who took part in the Battle on the Allied side.
The sculptor of the monument is Paul Day and the architects are Donald Insall Associates. The statue was cast by Morris Singer Ltd, which is the oldest established fine art foundry in the world and has cast many prominent statues and sculptures in London and around the world, including the lions and fountains in Trafalgar Square."
The names of the Airmen are listed under the Country of Origin
see link for more info.
www.bbm.org.uk/weblinks.htm
Sir Winston Churchill's
famous quote is inscribed along the base of the Monument
"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed
by so many to so few."
Date of Dedication: 09/25/2005
Property Permission: Public
Access instructions: This Monument is accessable at all times
Access times: From: 12:00 AM To: 12:00 AM
Website for Waymark: [Web Link]
Location of waymark: Victoria Embankment London, United Kingdom None
Commemoration: The Battle of Britain Airmen
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Visit Instructions:
Include a photo containing, at minimum, the monument and your GPSr. We'd prefer a photo containing YOU at the monument, but we understand that some people are camera-shy.
Also include a bit about your visit here.